Posted on 29 Sep, 2011 -
An A to Z of Celebrating YOU
An A to Z of Celebrating YOU - from your arms to your toes… from your joys to your woes
We are all singled out by the rays of the sun - yet all unsung heroes, each and every one
Dear Reader
Life, I’ve always felt, is full of contradictions and opposites. Which is why I have no qualms in following last Thursday’s advice to “take no pride in yourself” with an email today entitled ‘An A to Z of Celebrating You’.
Not that there is such a contradiction in the two emails anyway. For while this is all about celebrating all that you are and have achieved personally, all these celebrations are equally valid for ALL people. A celebration of being human. Of being achievers, survivors, strivers and fine appreciators of this magnificent life and world we have been given.
So this one’s for us all…
A is for both Arms and Amazing.
Go on, lift them up and have a look at them. Marvel at their strength. At the tasks that they perform. At the work that they have done for you.
Because every single person on this planet is an amazing miracle. A walking, talking bundle of brain, bones, brawn, bravery and bravado.
A Complex Creation built for Culture and Communication, we have the ability to talk. To communicate in ideas. And use a language whose marvels and sophistication outstrips our own understanding - even though it is us who have created it!
C is also for Calcium. In fact, 99% of the mass of the human body is made up of only six elements which are oxygen, carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, calcium and phosphorus.
D is for daring. Because you dare to get on a plane. To put your trust in others. And to peer over the edge of a cliff. D is also for death, because there would be no life without it.
E is for the edge, upon which we all live our lives. Because this is a tightrope act. The line between coping and collapsing. Between euphoria and dread. Between running out of steam and being renewed and revitalised yet again. By something…
But fear not. For you have family and friends and the ferocity of survival and the urge to celebrate and thrive to plug the gaps of dread.
G is for something simple. For gnats, perhaps. Or geraniums. Or gingernut biscuits.
H is for the french word ’hiver‘ for winter. To celebrate the fact that you have so much knowledge of the world, of the patterns of life and of the seasons. It is also for history.
I is ’ideals‘. For the dreams you have for a better life, for a better world. For a time and place where everything is perfect. ’I’ also stands for ’irreverence‘ - your ability to mock your own dreams and realise that all human endeavour is part of some crazy patchwork of opposites and genius eccentricities that we will never understand or conquer.
But the beauty of life is also in just being here. In the opportunity just to experience it. Just to be alive and to breathe. To have a go on the great roller-coaster.
K is for your knees. And for your kids if you have any. And for that knack that you have. You know the one. The one you can’t put your finger on but that makes you who you are.
L is for Love.
M is for Memories. Because memories are what you’re made up of. They are who you are. They are what you have become.
N knows no limits. N is also for nougat and occasionally being naughty. And for never quite knowing what tomorrow will bring.
O is for the obstacles that have littered your life’s path - and the amazing strength, love and ingenuity you have shown in overcoming them. O is also for the optimism that surprises you with its return just when you thought it had abandoned you…
P is for the passion that has driven you forward throughout your life. The lifeblood in your veins. The maddening fury. The thrill of the day.
Q is for the quality of life that you have created. Through your labour and persistence you have fed and clothed yourself. Looked after others. Brought food to the table. Warmth and beauty to your home.
R is for your radiance. Wherever you go you shine.
S is for the Sun which is more than a million times bigger than the Earth and contains 99.86% of the mass of the solar system. And more amazing still: there are rays of the sun each day that have fallen on and for you only.
Time, too, has been your friend. A whole new day full of it delivered to you each and every morning. And the way that you have filled what you’ve been given is completely unique to you.
Under no circumstances are your Unique attributions to be Underestimated. You are an Unsung hero.
V is for Virile, Value, Variety and Vanilla.
W is for Water Off a Duck’s back. Because you have survived so much and kept on marching on.
X is for all the eXertion you have given to your life. To millions of breaths you have eXhaled. And to the eXamples you have set to those around you.
Y is for your Youth. Even if it is going now it is still inside of you.
And finally… Z is always a difficult one in any kind of A to Z game. But Z also has a very special quality about it. Something quite exotic. Allusive. Something you long to understand. But something that is also very familiar.
Enjoy the rest of your week.
